Assignment #3 Briefing

Most of you are well into thinking about Assignment #3 (“A3”), if not far into production, so I wanted to provide some additional orientation to the process we have in mind:

I will be marking A3, so please direct all of your questions in my direction.

Please pay close attention to the A3 rubric provided.

Submit your A3 to me directly via email before end of day November 23rd. Given the Venture Forum activity in Module 12, late submissions will be unacceptable.

Also post your A3 to the Module 12 Venture Forum here before end of day November 23rd. The basic idea is that your A3 should begin with a short executive summary (‘elevator pitch’ or ‘pitch page’) that captures the essence of your venture in a compelling way that encourages venture analysts (in this case, your classmates) to review the entire pitch. Please note that your Venture Forum submission should not include the “self-evaluation” portion of A3, this should be something that is just included in your email to me.

If there is any reason you do not wish to expose your venture concept to the world (remember that outsiders can review any posting here) please discuss this with me ASAP. If the intellectual property (IP) involved is sensitive, I’m willing to sign a Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA) before receiving it for marking purposes. We could also arrange for peer reviews to be done via private email if that is your wish.

You will all be receiving your Module 12 analysis assignments by noon on November 24th. Please post your analyses as responses to the respective pitches before end of day November 30th.

In the spirit of the Venture Forum, I intend to submit a real pitch of my own, and look forward to your critical response!

The basic idea is to turn the tables on yourself – become an EVA again rather than an entrepreneur or intrapreneur. Self-analyze the strengths and weaknesses of both your venture and your pitch. Perhaps look at it from the perspective of what would it take to make this a real pitch that had a good chance of success.